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Senior Brett Bass scored four touchdowns as the Shoremen overcame a less than stellar defensive performance to beat North Olmsted by a 45-23 count. Bass scored on a 70 yard kickoff return, a 72 yard punt return, and runs of 11 and 72 yards. Brett finished with 120 yards on just five carries, running from the wing in the Shoremen’s jet package. Dontez Smith had another strong game with 162 yards on 25 carries, fullback Colin Lucas added some tough inside running and his first varsity touchdown, and backup tailback Larendai Ellis chipped in with 72 yards late in the game when the reserves took over.

North Olmsted received the kickoff and went on a six minute, 67 yard drive. Twice they converted on fourth and short, but the Avon Lake defense knocked down a couple of passes to force the Eagles to settle for a field goal and a 3-0 lead. The lead didn’t hold up for long as Bass grabbed the squib kickoff at the 30 and ran straight up the left sideline for his first varsity TD. Brill added the PAT for a 7-3 lead. The Shoremen “D” came back with their best series of the night, forcing a three and out that ended with a 10 yard punt to the N. Olmsted 40. The Shoremen picked up a couple of first downs before a holding penalty pushed them back. Brill salvaged the drive with a 31 yard field goal with nine minutes left in the half. The Eagles drove to the Shoremen 19, but when Michael Butrey batted down a pass on 4^th & 4, Avon Lake took over with three minutes left in the half. Behind a dominant performance by the offensive line, Smith and Bass moved the ball all the way to the Eagle one yard line with 14 seconds to go. Dontez took a handoff over the left side and powered into the end zone for a 17-3 halftime lead.

The Shoremen’s first drive of the second half stalled at the Eagle 46, and a shanked punt put North Olmsted in business at their 33. After a first down at the 47, Shamir Tomlinson broke free on a run down to the 16, and a horse collar penalty moved it to the eight. Marc Remy lined up in the wildcat formation and strolled around right end for a TD that cut the lead to 17-10. Mickey Steiner returned the kickoff to the Shoremen 34, where Smith and company ripped off three nice runs to the Eagle 45. Lucas then took a handoff over the left side, broke a couple of tackles, and carried a whole flock of Eagles another 20 yards as he bulldozed his way to the 16. Smith picked up five on first down, and then Bass took a jet sweep around right end for an 11 yard TD. A failed point-after kick left the score 23-10. Steiner intercepted a pass at the Eagle 33 on the next series, but the Shoremen threw it right back to them on the next play. Then, early in the fourth period, N. Olmsted punted the ball to Bass at the 28 yard line. Brett started up the middle, cut right, turned on the afterburners, and raced 72 yards to paydirt. Joe Pappas caught the two-point conversion pass from Jedlicka, and the Shoremen were up 31-10. But the Eagles weren’t done yet, hitting short passes at will. Shoddy tackling turned a couple of them into long gains, including a 23 yarder for a score to cut the lead to 31-17. An onside kick attempt didn’t go the required ten yards, so the Shoremen started from their 41. A penalty put them back at their 35, and then Smith gouged the Eagle defense with runs of 23, 13, and 21 yards. Lucas finished the drive with an eight yard burst up the gut to make it 38-17. In more or less a replay of the previous Eagle drive, short passes turned into big gains after missed tackles. North Olmsted scored again with just over four minutes to play to cut the lead to 38-23. Another failed onside kick gave the ball back to the Shoremen at their 36. After a botched handoff put them in 2^nd and 17 at their own 28, Bass took an inside handoff on a counter out of the jet and raced 72 yards for his fourth TD of the game. Brill’s PAT made it 45-23 with three minutes left. The Eagles cruised down the field again as Avon Lake got some subs in the game, but sophomore DB Wyatt Ohm picked off a pass in the end zone and ran it out to the 15. Ellis finished up the Shoremen’s offensive outburst with runs of 20 and 52 yards before time ran out.

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Avon Lake	7	10	6	22	45
North Olmsted	3	0	7	13	23

	N.O.	A.L.
First downs	23	15
Rush Yds	273	417
Pass Yds	187	7
Passes att-comp-int	28-14-2	4-2-1
Fumbles-lost	2-0	1-0
Penalties	11-79	7-73

NO – Rodriguez FG 28
AL – Bass 70 kickoff return (Brill kick)
AL – Smith 1 run (Brill kick)
AL – Brill FG 31
NO – Remy 8 run (Rodriguez kick)
AL – Bass 11 run (kick failed)
AL – Bass 72 punt return (Pappas pass from Jedlicka)
NO – Rodriguez 23 pass from Novak (Rodriguez kick)
AL – Lucas 9 run (Brill kick)
NO – Tomlinson 1 run (run failed)
AL – Bass 77 run (Brill kick)